"A" water

Today, for the first time in 2012 I got to fish my "A" water. It isn't that my "B", "C", "D", or "E" water is that big of a drop off, but I love my "A" spot. I know it well, and know where to expect to see a tailer in the gravel, or a slow cruiser working a bank. The fish are tough, but when you bring your "A" game to your "A" water...good things happen.

That fish tipped the scales at 23 lbs, and came shortly after I landed a 21 lber. I had my "A" game today. Incidentally, I had decided to call Wendy Berrell while walking a dead stretch, and hooked, fought, and landed the 21 lber with Wendy on the phone. That was a first.

The fish were active. I saw tons of tailing fish, most working the gravel bars and edges of mud flats, and they responded well to a soft hackle with a worm tail (thanks Travis!). This was carping at its best. With good visibility I was spotting fish a long way off, and got to make long casts and key on body turns and tail twitches...heady stuff! I put the stalk on a few fish and got in close to see them reach up and suck in the soft hackle as it sank near their mouth. Some fantastic takes today. All told, I must have landed around 25 carp...two over twenty, one 18 lber and a bunch of 15s.

I lost two or three fish because I didn't set the hook hard enough. Little known carp on the fly rule #1: when you know a carp has eaten your fly, set the hook! Hard! Don't be a wussy and half set or gently lift the rod...hammer the fish when you know he has eaten the fly!

Which brings me to Little known carp on the fly rule #2: if you don't know the carp has taken your fly...go fish for trout. Seriously, they are way easier.

 

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